What is Yog?

By Yogafundi – Yogaloft’s Writer At Large

Yog means to yoke. That’s it folks…it’s all about the egg. Seriously though…it comes from the Sanskrit word ‘yuj’ – meaning Samadhi or ‘oneness’.

When we say ‘yoke’ we mean to join or harness ourselves to the road of Yog, in the hope of achieving a state of oneness. The ‘a’ at the end of the word Yog is a Romanisation of the root. So, some of us yogis use the Sanskrit pronunciation to refer to the traditional practice outlined in the source texts which are the origin of contemporary yoga in the west. If you’d like to burrow down this particular rabbit hole see the classic Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.

Superhero yogis

Now I’m not here to lecture anyone or discuss how to achieve a full state of Yog. But, I will say that in some of the important texts - I’m sure it’s in one of my editions - it mentions that if you practise a lot, you should be able to achieve some pretty remarkable things. Among them, X-ray vision, flight, a heart rate of 1bpm (which of course means you can hold your breath for 18 minutes, swim effortlessly in frigid waters of 2C and live to 136 years of age), a beatific countenance and possibly, although this is by no means guaranteed, be able to touch your toes. This last one is the holy grail for many aspiring Yog practitioners and I’m sure many would swap the X-ray vision for the ability to put their socks on with straight legs given the choice. You also get to eat lots of ‘only vegetables’, which makes yogis a total hassle for the family to cater for. And no…roast chicken is not ‘nearly a vegetable’.

Unity over pretzels

Anyway…back to Yog. It is a multi-faceted, ancient tradition aimed at uniting the different parts of us and I’m not talking about uniting your hand with your big toe, behind your head in Pretzel Pose. The different layers of us. By following a well proven, brilliantly concocted method. A lot of people interpret the method in a host of ways but at the end of the day, we are all here to try to achieve a state of ‘Yog’. A state of oneness, wholeness and unity with both ourselves and the universe. If you want to know more about the subject as a whole then probably the best book ever written is called Light on Life by the man who brought Yog to the West – BKS Iyengar.

The 8 components of Yog

Asana, the yoga poses we do in most classes, are the calisthenics bit. They are a very well thought out series of physical exercise aimed at bringing strength, stability and flexibility to the body, mind and body-mind. They work both on the external layers such as skin, muscles, tendons, ligaments and joints as well as the internal organs. However, asana is only 1/8 of Yog. There are seven other important parts as well. We do touch on them here and there in a standard asana class and they will all be enhanced by performing asana but essentially, we are toning and preparing the body to aid us in the effort of achieving that unity we seek. And, having our main vehicle – this assembly of bones, organs and fluid that we call our body - in top condition enhances the experience. The other seven ‘limbs’ are, in no particular order, ethics, self-discipline, breath control, withdrawal of the senses (from external experience), concentration, meditation and finally, if you get all the previous facets in Olympian condition, total unity or Yog.

Go Slow and mind your metaphors

If one decides to pull on the harness and steadily, with fixed attention and a little self-discipline, plough the furrows of your field under the guidance of a good teacher, the rewards of Yog can be great. It’s no quick fix though, and the road should be journeyed with patience and dedication (too many metaphors I know). Rushing and pushing create hardness and injuries and that is what we are here to address and avoid. Proper practise takes time and develops deep levels of sensitivity, concentration and steadiness and breaks old, unhealthy patterns down.

And if the final goal of Yog feels too remote for the impatient yogi, at least we end up feeling better than when we walked through the studio door.